LulzSec 'leader' revealed as FBI informant

The FBI has 'cut off the head of LulzSec' thanks largely to the organisation's leader, who has been acting as a government witness for the last nine months.

The FBI has revealed that the infamous hacker previously known only as 'Sabu' has been working as a government informant and has assisted in bringing charges against alleged colleagues.

The announcement, which will send shockwaves through the hacking community, was made following the indictment of five people, believed to be high-ranking members of Anonymous and LulzSec.

LulzSec is thought to be responsible for a number of high profile hacks against organisations like Sony, the FBI, the CIA and News International.

It seems that 'Sabu' a 28-year-old computer programmer from New York, real name Hector Xavier Monsegur, has been working for the Feds for around nine months following his own arrest last summer.

It is believed that Monsegur, easily the most well known hacker on the planet, began giving-up his colleagues after secretly pleading guilty to computer hacking charges in Manhattan last year.

According to a Fox News report: "On August 15, 2011 Monsegur pleaded guilty to more than ten charges relating to his hacking activity. In the following few weeks, he worked almost daily out of FBI offices, helping the feds identify and ultimately take down the other high-level members of LulzSec and Anonymous, sources said."

The report also quotes an official who assisted in 'flipping' Sabu, who says: "It was because of his kids. He didn't want to go away to prison and leave them. That's how we got him."

Of the five people named in the indictment, two are from the UK, two from Ireland and one from Chicago in the United States.

However the initial five may just be the tip of the iceberg, with the ramifications of Sabu's collaboration with the FBI yet to be fully revealed.

Make no mistake though, Goodfellas fans, this news effectively makes Sabu the Henry Hill of hackers.